Chapter 201: Invalid

Disclaimer: 

1. This is an unofficial translation and no permission has been obtained from the author/ official publisher. It may be taken down if the author/official publisher requests. 

2. This is a fan work and the interpretation represents only the translator’s personal views without any input from the author. 

3. No permission has been granted to use, publish, upload and/or copy this translation to any other site except for Second Life Translations.

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“Has your dasao made things difficult for you?” Liu Lin asked. After the previous incident, he had witnessed that even though their household outwardly maintained a rigid decorum, behind closed doors, their behaviour was no better than an ordinary village family. It was just that these prestigious families were more complicated than ordinary ones, with more undercurrents and means of dealing with things. 

Song Yao shook her head when she heard. “She hasn’t. Ever since… The Shi family’s banquet, she hasn’t caused any trouble for me.”

Liu Lin nodded his head, but didn’t trust Song Yao’s words fully. Song Yao was raised a precious young miss, and would not say unpleasant things behind others backs. She didn’t seem to be able to do it – whenever she tried, she would say it shamefacedly, and would look obviously uncomfortable. But couldn’t he already guess that her dasao would definitely be giving her a hard time? The only reason she wasn’t trying to chase her out was probably because of this marriage proposal. This was a chance to get a rich betrothal gift for her!

“Liu Lin,” Song Yao didn’t know what Liu Lin was thinking. She was still thinking of their earlier topic, “I saw your meimei.”

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Nkw Nkd pxkzle. Mbl kdpvydv Nkw Dw’la oyp xldvksdle, bkp xsse kxrashle. Tl dseele bkp blye yde pyke, “Dw’la pyke yp xwnb obld pbl tsv bsxl. Tso oyp pbl? Rpd’v pbl pxyav? Yu xlkxlk kp hlau kdvlzzktldv. Fbl’p xwnb clvvla yv nsxkdt wr okvb rzydp vbyd vbl alpv sq wp.”

Fsdt Zys dseele bla blye. Fbl nshlale bla xswvb yde pxkzle, “Fbl kp hlau kdvlzzktldv, yde kp alyzzu hlau ralvvu…. Fbl kp yzps hlau nswavlswp.” Fbl pxkzle qykdvzu, “Zsw jllr pyukdt vbyv usw yal hkzzytlap cu ckavb, cwv ds sdl nyd vlzz yv yzz qasx uswa xlkxlk’p clbyhkswa. Rv xwpv cl vbyv usw zlqv vbl hkzzytl obld pbl oyp pvkzz hlau uswdt. Rd ydu nypl, pbl clbyhlp fwpv zkjl ydu svbla tldvzu cale tkaz. Mbl oyu pbl prlyjp kp tldlaswp yde nzlya. Fbl kp… dsv zkjl vbl alpv sq wp.”

Nkw Nkd zywtble, “Mbyv’p oblal usw’al oasdt. Ebld xu qyxkzu xshle swv sq vbl hkzzytl, xu pkpvla oypd’v vbyv pxyzz! Jwv lhld obld pbl oyp kd vbl hkzzytl, pbl oyp alyzzu pbyar.”

Fsdt Zys’p lulp okeldle. Fbl nshlale bla xswvb yde pvyale yv bkx. Mbld pbl pvyavle vs pxkzl. Rv oypd’v fwpv Nkw Dw’la obs oyp pbyar, ds sdl oswze cl yczl vs vlzz vbyv Nkw Nkd oyp yd bsdlpv dykhl hkzzytla cu ckavb. Ohlauvbkdt ycswv bkx…. Frsjl sq nwddkdt.&dcpr;

Xq nswapl, pbl eked’v pyu y osae ycswv vbyv. Fbl fwpv pxkzle yde vbswtbv kv vs blaplzq. Fbl caswtbv Nkw Nkd vs vbl xykd nswavuyae. Nkw Nkd oyp zssjkdt yaswde yp bl oyzjle. Mbkp oyp nzlyazu y hlau zwmwakswp alpkeldnl. Wasx vbl xlvknwzswp elnsayvkhl elvykzp, vs vbl clywvkqwz rykdvkdtp sd vbl oyzz, vbl ryhkzksdp, vbl zkvvzl caketl shla y pvalyx yde vbl clywvkqwz tyaeldp. Ohlauvbkdt prsjl sq vbl olyzvb vblu sdnl bye.&dcpr;

Rv oyp fwpv vbyv kd y zsv sq rzynlp, ytl yde olya olal yzps nzlyazu hkpkczl. Mbl xkppkdt vkzl, vbl ewpv kd xydu yalyp prsjl sq clkdt zsdt dltzlnvle.&dcpr;

Gde yp vbl vos sq vblx oyzjle – vblu xwpv byhl oyzjle qsa yv zlypv 30 xkdwvlp – vblu eked’v pll ydusdl. Mblu sdzu pyo y pkdtzl sze plahydv qasx y zsdt ekpvydnl yoyu, nyaaukdt oyvla. Nkw Nkd nswzed’v blzr ypjkdt, “Gald’v usw yqayke sq pvyukdt kd pwnb y zyatl rzynl? Mblal yald’v xydu rlsrzl yaswde – yald’v usw yqayke yv dktbv?” Gzvbswtb vbkp oyp vbl rzynl pbl bye tasod wr kd, kv oyp alyzzu vss ckt, yde vblal olal alyzzu vss qlo rlsrzl!

Fsdt Zys dseele bla blye. Ekvb y ckvvla pxkzl, “Xq nswapl R yx yqayke. Rv alyzzu kp hlau pnyau yv dktbv. Jlnywpl vblal yal ps qlo rlsrzl pvyukdt blal, vblal yald’v y zsv sq zktbvp. Yspv sq vbl rzynl kp rkvnb czynj…. Mbl kdpvydv kv vwadp eyaj, xu dwapl yde R oswze pbwv vbl nswavuyae essa yde alqwpl vs zlyhl….” Ebld pbl pyke vbkp, pbl ytykd tyhl y ckvvla pxkzl. “Mbydjqwzzu swvpkelap esd’v jdso vbl lmynv pkvwyvksd swa qyxkzu kp kd. Wldt Msod kp yzps iwkvl y pyql yaly, svblaokpl…. Jwv lhld ps, vbklhlp byhl casjld kd y qlo vkxlp clqsal. Ohld vbswtb vblu eked’v pvlyz xwnb, vblu oswze oydela yaswde vbl lxrvu nswavuyaep.”

Liu Lin was shaking his head. Worriedly, he said, “That’s really not safe! Your family needs a plan.”

Song Yao laughed bitterly, “It’s really nothing… At least everyone still has two or three people staying with them. Nothing should happen.”

Liu Lin frowned. He mentally shook his head. 

As the two of them spoke, they finally passed the inner courtyard’s door. When they got there, they finally saw two or three servants, carrying water basins in and out. When they saw Song Yao, they didn’t curtsy, instead continuing on with their tasks. 

Just this small family was staying in this huge place. If they didn’t walk around every few days, they would probably start feeling like strangers to it! Liu Lin just couldn’t understand it. They were already in this situation, why won’t they sell their property? If they sold it, they would have money in their hands and could engage in something to support themselves, right? Why insist on holding onto this empty mansion?

No matter what, he would never understand the logic of a prestigious household. As he was thinking, he had already arrived at the room door. Because no one was around to announce them, Song Yao stood outside the door and gently called out, “Mother, father, I…. brought Liu Lin here.”

After a while, a woman’s voice called out, “Come in then.”

Song Yao brought Liu Lin into the house. She pushed aside the curtain and a strong medicinal smell coupled with a humid, mildewy scent hit their noses. 

Song Yao entered first, with Liu Lin following closely behind. The room was actually rather brightly lit, and it was rather large. There was a large bed against the wall, and lying on it was a middle aged man. Because he had been ill for such a long time, it wasn’t easy to tell his age. But he looked to be at least 50 or 60 years old. He looked shrivelled up. His body was covered with a thick blanket and only his head was exposed. He was skeletal – the hand he had extended from under the blanket looked to be as thin as a chicken claw. It was rather frightening. 

When Liu Lin saw the state of Song Yao’s father, his heart was chilled. He finally understood why two women were overseeing this Hanlin family. From the looks of things, this Hanlin family’s fate was doomed!

At the bedside, a 40-year-old woman sat with her hair tied up in a bun. She herself didn’t look to be doing too well. Liu Lin finally remembered that the wet nurse seemed to have mentioned that this Madam Song had herself been ill for a long time. Looking at her colour – she did indeed look to be too pale. Dressed in red silk with a fur lined short coat and a deep green skirt, it seemed she had dressed up for the occasion in brand new clothes. She was even more brightly dressed than Song Yao. 

Guessing that this must be Madam Song, Liu Lin quickly went forward and gave a deep bow. According to the village custom, after the betrothal gifts and the betrothal contract have been handed over, he had already become their son-in-law, and could call them his parents. But the townsfolk had different rules. It had been said that there was even a specific ritual before he could change his address to them, with a “fee” involved. Liu Lin was a bit unsure as to what to call them and what customs he needed to follow. There were very few people in the mansion and no one had guided him in the matter. So he avoided the situation entirely by not offering an elaborate greeting and not calling them anything. 

The woman sat still, unmoving. Looking Liu Lin up and down, she saw that Liu Lin was a tall and sturdy man, with a rather handsome face. In addition, he had deliberately dressed up today and wore a green silk with flowers embossed on them. On his waist was a tassel with a pair of jade fish pendants. Madam Song’s eyes lingered on the jade pendants, her expression alternating rapidly as she stared. 

When Liu Lin gave his bow, she slanted a look at Song Yao. Her lips carried a cruel sneer as she gave her a disdainful cold look. Then she deliberately used that same disdainful expression and gave Liu Lin a once over. 

Song Yao lowered her head and pretended not to see, but her entire face had paled, and she bit down hard on her lip. 

When Liu Lin had straightened back up, Madam Song’s expression had returned to normal, and her voice was also similarly gentle and warm. There wasn’t even a hint of her earlier disdain. Softly, she said, “Thank you for coming, we’ve been looking forward to your visit. As you can see, the Master is rather ill. It is a relief for us to finally arrange the First Young Miss’s marriage partner.” Then she deliberately looked Liu Lin over, but this time, there wasn’t even a hint of contempt. She looked him over very naturally before smiling and nodding, “After seeing you, I can relax. After all, this is the first time we have met in person – I am glad to have met you. You live up to my expectations! I am sure the Master feels the same way.”

As she said that, she turned and very quietly called out, “Master, Master? Open your eyes and have a look. This is the First Young Miss’s future husband. Have a look, what do you think?” Her voice was tinier than a mosquito as she called. Liu Lin was skeptical – could you wake someone with that voice? Was she purposefully trying not to wake him up?

Surprisingly, it seemed that the Master hadn’t gone to sleep. His eyes were already half open, as he tried to look at Liu Lin. Liu Lin hurried forward a step, allowing Song Yao’s father a chance to closely scrutinise him. 

The Master’s muddy eyes looked at Liu Lin before he very slowly said, “Daughter… Son-in-law?” His voice was very hoarse and soft. It had obviously been disused for a long time. 

Song Yao quickly hurried forward. With surprised delight, she said, “Father!”

Madam Song had a mild frown on her face, and she started to move, as if unconsciously, to stand up. She stood at the side of the bed, blocking most of the person lying in bed. With the Master’s view mostly obstructed, Madam Song very quickly smiled and said, “That’s right! It’s our future son-in-law! Look at how clever he looks! The two of them are a match made in heaven! Don’t you think so too, Master? Oh! I know. It’s alright if you can’t stand, I will just get First to come and have a look at him. You just continue to rest here!”

She bowed toward the bed, completely blocking the old Master’s view. Then she smiled and said to Liu Lin, “Master’s health is not good; it’s not convenient for him to host guests… Why don’t we just leave it here? It’s already a blessing that he could have a look at you. As to the rest, I will get the First Young Miss to bring you to see the First Young Master. You can continue to chat.”

Right at that moment, the Master’s body was wracked with coughs. Madam Song immediately called for servants to come and attend to him. Liu Lin and Song Yao could only leave. 

From everything that had happened, Liu Lin understood that Madam Song had agreed to the marriage without informing the old Master —- Master Song was probably completely unaware that Song Yao’s future husband was a merchant…..

It was clear that if Master Song were still alert enough to manage the household, he would have never agreed to this match. Song Yao’s earlier match was probably arranged by Master Song. From his earlier choice, it was clear that Master Song prioritised matching stations in marriage. And even though he had become a xiucai, these qualifications were nothing in their eyes. In their point of view, he was still a merchant!

No wonder Madam Song had been so uneasy. 

When Liu Lin thought it through, he couldn’t help sighing. He turned to look at Song Yao – was Song Yao feeling sad about having to settle for him? The only reason she mentioned marriage before…. Was because she had had no other way left to her. 

But Liu Lin was unable to make himself ask her. After all, the current her…. Was still left with no other way. If he were to keep asking her if she would regret their match, she might start to overthink, and assume that he himself had regrets about it.